Jonny and Cindependent Executive Director, Allyson West, chat about Doris' Owens impact in Cincinnati and Allyson's outlook on the festival. Then Jonny is joined by Doris Owens (6:50). They talk about Doris' role in the founding of Film Cincinnati in the early 90's (8:30), how Doris got her start in the business (13:30), her work with the Owen's Group (22:05), the impact of the pandemic (27:45), and more!

University of Cincinnati Professor and Director of Programming for the Niehoff Center, Michael Gott, joins Jonny to announce two special screenings taking place on the University of Cincinnati campus, Friday April 21st and Tuesday April 25th (2:01). Then Jonny is joined by Cincinnati Casting Director Lynn Meyers, to discuss Cincinnati's rising profile as a Hollywood filming location (18:20), the impact of the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit (24:00), the viability of Cincinnati as a place to pursue a film career (27:04), recently shot and yet to be released films - Wise Guys and The Bikeriders (29:52), Lynn's experience working on Carol (2015) and The Killing of the Sacred Deer (2017) (35:04), Lynn's favorite film where Cincinnati "plays itself" (40:57), and how Lynn got her start as a casting director (43:20).

Cindependent curator and multi-year CityBeat honoree for Best Local Filmmaker in Cincinnati, Evan Holt, joins Jonny to break down their 3 favorite films of 2022 (1:59) and their 3 most anticipated films of 2023 (17:58). Then Jonny is joined by Jonathan McNeal, the manager of the Neon Theater in Dayton, Ohio (27:45). They talk about the history of the Neon (28:20), the effect of the pandemic on the theater (36:35), and then the status of streaming services vs the theatrical release model in 2023 (43:12).

Cindependent Lead Curator and Associate Professor of Art History at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, Annie Dell'Aria, joins host and fellow Lead Curator, Jonny Shenk, to reminisce on Cindependent's two pre-covid festivals in 2018 and 2019 (1:32) and break down several of the 2023 Oscar nominated short films (7:45) - starting with live-action (13:40), followed by animation (23:17), and documentary (32:51). Then, Jonny is joined by Mark Hood (39:15) to discuss Mark's journey as a filmmaker, his experience at the Cindependent Film Festival with his film Hardface in 2018 (51:26), finding a streaming home for Hardface during the pandemic (1:00:58), and more.